


Samurai

by AshedAshley



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Canon-Typical Violence, Explicit Language, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Third Person, Post-Canon, Science Fiction, Spoilers, so im basically writing a sequel, the endings made me cry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:02:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28142805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshedAshley/pseuds/AshedAshley
Summary: After V sacrifices herself to give Johnny Silverhand a second chance in life, he quickly realizes that he's changed, and while he tries to stop obsessing over what happened, he can't seem to escape his guilt as he seeks to find his purpose.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 41





	1. New Dawn Fades

“Stop the bus!” A young man’s voice called from outside.

Just across the street from the cemetery, a bus’s engine sputtered and rattled. Since it was on auto-pilot, only three people sat inside. The one in the back was a young woman. She had tech lines coming down past her dark green eyes, covered by a pair of aviators, that worked their way around her cheekbones. As they got further back, though, they got covered up by her red hair, styled into a side cut with the left side of her head shaved.

She looked out the window to see that damn kid again, and he had the electric guitar in his hand. “Heey! Get off!” he called out once more, walking past her and up to the front of the bus. He tried peering in through the door with no luck. After that, he turned around to see her and hurried over. “The guitar!” he said, holding it up for her to see. “You forgot your guitar!”

The woman shook her head. “No, I didn’t,” she said with a smirk. While the kid could only hear her voice, there was another in her mind. It was the voice of the man in control of this body: Johnny Silverhand. How he ended up in the body of a 27-year-old woman was a long story and one that caused him great grief whenever it came to mind. “Haven’t forgotten a thing,” they muttered as the bus started to pull away. “Never will.”

As the bus picked up speed, they looked out the window and couldn’t help but crack a smile at the thought of finally leaving Night City. The whole place was a lie- an illusion of promise and potential, but by the time most realize it, they’re already too late. Either you had no choice but to stay, or you were already dead. Such was the case for Johnny and Valerie, although everyone knew her merely as V.

‘ _Fuck, I’m god damn freezing_ ,’ they thought as a shiver went down their spine. They reached up for the air conditioner above their seat and switched it off. ‘ _V always did get cold easily_.’ They cracked a small smile, hoping to fool themself into thinking about the happy memories the two of them had, but it was no use. Every time they thought about her, it was like another knife just got stuck into their heart. It didn’t help that V’s voice was what came out every time they opened their mouth as if it were taunting them. ‘ _I’d give anything to hear you be the one to use this voice again_ ,’ they thought.

As hard as it was, they tried to stop thinking about V. They gently slid the pair of aviators off of their face and sat there, looking down at the reflection below before folding them back up and setting them down on the empty seat to their left. Turning their attention to the passing landscape again, they leaned their head against the window and watched as the City of Lies became nothing but a background to them. In front of them was the open plains. Sure, it was essentially the middle of nowhere, but even that was a hell of a lot better than Night City.

Time passed, and slowly but surely, Night City started to fade away with the sunlight. By now, the other two passengers had already gotten off, leaving a sole occupant on the bus. ‘ _Well_ ,’ they thought, leaning back into their seat. ‘ _This is what you wanted, right, Johnny? A fresh start? So, quit feeling all mopey and depressed_.’ They took a shaky breath. ‘ _If I’m gonna start from scratch, I’ll need a new identity. I can’t exactly call myself Johnny Silverhand in this body, and there’s no fuckin’ way I’m gonna start callin’ myself V_.’ For a brief moment, they thought about the name Rogue, but that didn’t last long. ‘ _Just let her rest_. _She deserves that much_ ,’ they thought before trying to come up with a list of names. However, they quickly dismissed them, as they all had some sort of tie to someone Johnny or V used to know. ‘ _Quit being so fucking sentimental and just come up with a damn name_!’ they scolded themself. ‘ _It shouldn’t be that damn hard_.’ They placed their forehead into their hands until suddenly, an idea struck.

‘ _Skylar_ ,’ they decided. They didn’t really have any reason behind it, but the name just popped into their head, and they liked the sound of it. ‘ _Sure, why not_?’ They stood up in the aisle and took their brown leather duffle bag out from its compartment. After unzipping it, the first thing that greeted them was the Samurai logo on the back of the jacket that Rogue had made for V. They took it out, revealing a pack of cigarettes, a few MaxDocs, and a Malorian Arms 3516. Gently, they set their aviators inside the bag and zipped it back up before putting it back in its compartment. After that, they laid down on the seats and threw the jacket over themself as a makeshift blanket. It wasn’t very comfortable, but eventually, their eyes slowly shut, and they drifted off to sleep.

* * *

As Johnny climbed up the steps to the beckoning yellow light, he let out an internal sigh of relief upon seeing V, or rather, her construct by now, standing at the edge. He cautiously approached her and lightly tapped her shoulder.

“Hey, V. Happy to see me?” he asked with a smirk.

V whipped around, apparently startled by Johnny, but she relaxed upon seeing his face. “Honestly, yeah. I was starting to get doubts. After I popped the pills, I blacked out and woke up here. Did I miss anything?” She walked past him and over to what looked like the diner table where they had their first somewhat pleasant conversation.

Johnny’s stomach twisted up as he sat down across from her. “Rogue’s dead. Smasher was there,” he told her. The one thing he found solace in was the fact that he got to put a bullet through Adam Smasher’s skull.  
V’s expression softened, showing a bit of remorse. If anyone knew how close Johnny and Rogue were, it was V. “I’m sorry.” Her voice was like a whisper- as if that was all she could manage to get out.

“Shouldn’t be,” Johnny said, tapping his metal fingers on the surface of the table. “She died for me, not for you. No need to go blamin’ yourself.”

“Is my body still in one piece?” V asked.

The fight with Smasher took quite a bit out of Johnny and V as an extension, but it was nothing she wouldn’t quickly recover from once she was back in her body. “Parked it in Arasaka Tower’s basement, plugged it into the network,’ he explained.

V cracked a small smile. “Heh, figured as much. Your output’s been torchin’ my brain with Soulkiller for a good while now.”

“You’ll be alright,” Johnny said, kicking one of his feet up onto the table. “I mean, look, you made it this far.”

“Awareness of what’s happening right now- that just raunches,” V muttered, leaning her head against her hand. “Like, Alt neatly packed me into an engram. Couldn’t even tell when… or how.”

“So, whaddya think?” Johnny asked her. “Like being a clump of ones and zeroes?” If anyone knew anything about that, it was him. It was still strange to think of V being the same, though.

V shuddered. “At first, the phantom pain… Jesus. Felt like my whole body was on fire. Realize now it’s not pain at all, just some digital simulacrum.”

Johhny smirked. ‘ _Guess Alt’s been talking to her_ ,’ he thought.

“Guess Alt’s gonna start moving this digital psyche I am back into my flesh, but… got no idea if I’ll survive or what I’ll be if I do.” V’s voice was nervous, and understandably so. What they were doing was uncharted territory. Not even Arasaka had attempted something like this. Although Johnny was sure that it was only a matter of time until they did.

“So we at the finish line?” he asked. “It’s all in Alt’s hands now?” He was expecting some sort of goodbye from V, but instead, Alt’s form greeted them.

“No,” she told them.

V jumped in her skin, looking up at the digital figure. “What the- Alt?” She sounded surprised like Alt had just jumped out of a coffin.

“I made a mistake in excluding the body as a factor,” Alt told the two.

Johnny cocked an eyebrow towards Alt. ‘ _She never makes mistakes- not with stuff like this, anyway_ ,’ he thought.

“DNA reconfiguration has progressed too far,” Alt explained. “Added to aggressive, invasive medications, the body’s immune system attacking its own neurons-“

“Spit it out! In human terms!” Johnny snapped, cutting her off.

“V will die independent of what I do,” Alt said coldly. “This is inevitable. This is imminent.”

Johnny felt his heart pounding. He looked over at V, who had leaned forward and placed her head into her knuckles. At that moment, he felt anger more than anything. V didn’t deserve this. “For fucks sake, Alt, you had one job, and you fucked it up?!” He still had no idea how Alt could let something as crucial as this slip. It felt wrong.

“I could not know the situation before conducting a thorough and precise diagnosis,” Alt defended herself, or rather, itself, considering she insisted that the Alt that Johnny knew was gone and replaced by code.

“You promised this poor little shit a new life!” Johnny gestured to V. “And you lied! You fuckin’ lied!” he snapped.

“Johnny, shut it for two seconds, will ya? Gotta think!” V responded in an equally aggressive tone.

“Gonna be all right, V. We’ll think of somethin’,” Johnny told her in an attempt to calm her down.

“I said, gimme one fuckin’ minute!” she snapped.

Johnny looked up. “Alt, c’mon. There’s gotta be a way out of this.” The tone in his voice wasn’t really pleading, but dammit, he felt like he was. V was the only person that ever gave half a shit about him. No way in hell was he gonna let this happen to her.

“The biochip has irreversibly changed the host organism. It no longer belongs to V, who is an intruder there,” Alt explained. “The situation is different for you. All changes were made to accommodate you.”

“Hang on,” V butted in, practically jumping to her feet. “Tellin’ your ex to kick me outta my own fuckin’ body?” she demanded.

“The changes are irreversible,” Alt reminded her. “You have nothing left to lose. He has everything to gain. I will not interfere with your personal affairs, but while Johnny still has full control, he can do what he wishes.”

V stormed off, and Johnny stood up to follow her. He came up to her, sitting facing backward in a chair, and he moved in front of her, sitting down so she could see him. “I can’t believe it,” her voice was shaky and barely audible. “Everything. A-All we did- it was pointless.”

Johnny sighed. “Got zero intentions of doin’ you wrong,” he told her. “We made a deal, and I’m stickin’ to it. What do I do, Alt?”

V’s eyes narrowed into slits, and she forced herself up. “You lying sack of shit.”

“Simply cross the bridge,” Alt instructed. “You will become a part of me as V’s body and former life are restored.”

Johnny stood up, but V marched up to him furiously with only a few inches of clearance between them. “Telling me what you said at the Pistis Sophia was a lie?” she demanded.

“On the contrary, V. This is me taking the bullet for you, don’t you get that?” Johnny asked.

“Only for me to die six months later!” V exclaimed. She took a deep breath, seemingly calming down. “Let me be the one to go,” she finally said after a long period of silence. “At least this way, you can live a full life.” She turned around and made her way to the bridge.

‘ _No fuckin’ way I’m letting her do this. I’ll never be able to forgive myself_ ,’ Johnny thought. “So that’s it? You turnin’ your back on the problem again?!” He called out, hoping she would stop, but she kept going. Johnny broke out into a sprint and put himself in her path. “What, a little guilt creeps in, and that’s that? You give up?”

V looked away, seemingly wiping a tear away. “Stop. Just stop,” she pleaded before shoving past him.

Johnny reached out and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her back around. “Gonna just roll over instead of fightin’ for what’s yours, decomish yourself ‘cause you’re too fuckin’ scared to say goodbye?” he demanded. ‘ _Come on, V. Please don’t do this. Not after everything you’ve done for me_.’

“It’s my decision. Let me make it,” V insisted before turning around, back toward the light at the end of the bridge.

‘ _V, please just stop_.’ Johnny gave her a more aggressive shove this time. “You’re loyal; I’ll grant you that. But dammit, are you dense. Haven’t changed a bit since we met.”

V shook her head. “I’m so damn tired, Johnny. I just wanna start anew, even if I don’t know what that means.” She paused and looked him straight in the eyes. “I bet it’d be good for you too,” she said with the slightest hint of a smile before turning around again.

‘ _Fuck_.’ V was slowly approaching the edge, and Johnny was becoming more desperate. But for the first time, possibly in his whole life, Johnny Silverhand felt a single tear roll down his cheek. “V,” he called out one more time as he wiped it away. Thankfully, she turned around. “I’m just… I’m just scared for ya,” he admitted.

She turned around and walked back over to him with her hand extended. “I’ll see ya, ‘round, Johnny.” For the first time since they got here, V had a sense of clarity in her eyes, and she had a full smile on her face.

‘ _I really can’t stop her, can I?_ ’ Johnny grabbed her hand and pulled her into a hug. “I’ll miss you, V. I’m not just saying that, either. I’ll really fuckin’ miss ya.”

“I’ll miss you too, Johnny.” The way her voice quivered, Johnny could tell she was crying. “Take care.” She broke the hug and took the last few steps toward the end of the bridge. In the next moment, she was gone.

* * *

They shot up in their seat, cold sweat dripping down from their body. Their hands were tightly wrapped around the backs of the chairs on either side of them, and they panted heavily. Looking around, they saw the bus had stopped outside of what looked to be a gas station, and the sun had risen.

It was at that moment that they realized something. As soon as he stepped into that well, Johnny Silverhand was dead. The only one left was Skylar.

“I just wanna start anew- I bet it’d be good for you too.” V’s words echoed in her mind, and she stood up, pulling her jacket up and slipping her arms through the sleeves.

“You’re right, V,” Skylar said aloud, even though she wasn’t there. “You gave your life for mine- took a bullet for me. If I can’t return the favor, then you can be damn sure that I’ll make sure you didn’t give this up for nothin’.” She didn’t notice it at the time, but for the first time, she didn’t hear Johnny’s voice whenever she spoke. She reached into her bag and pulled out the aviators, slipping them onto her face and briefly looking at her reflection in the window before stepping off the bus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want a better look at V/Skylar for this story, go check out my Twitter (In my profile in case you're curious). Hope you guys enjoy this story, cause I've got a ton of ideas and I'm excited for you to see them.


	2. Off the Face of the Earth

“The bus will depart again in ten minutes,” the automated voice on the bus told Skylar as she climbed down the stairs and onto the sandy ground.

‘ _Right, just gonna make a quick stop and grab a few things_ ,’ Skylar told herself. ‘ _Nothin’ too expensive- just a beer or two, some grub, and a lighter_.’ She still had about five thousand eddies to spare, but because she had yet to figure out what she was planning to do to make money, she decided to spend lightly for the moment. Skylar took the pack of cigarettes from her bag, which she had slung over her shoulder, and took one out. She was about to put it in her mouth when she found herself hesitating.

“Make sure my body stays in one piece.” She thought back to that final request V made on the rooftop.

Skylar looked at the box of cigarettes still in her hand and sighed. “Fuck,” she muttered, casting the cigarettes aside. Out of all the traits of V’s traits that had rubbed off on Skylar and vice versa, V’s refusal to smoke was one of the things Skylar wished hadn’t changed the most. “Even when you’re gone, you still manage to be a pain in the ass sometimes,” she muttered, smirking lightly.

Before heading into the gas station, Skylar took a moment to look around. Aside from the building that she stood in front of, nothing was around for miles. Nothing but the occasional tumbleweed, the beaten-up roads that stretched out for as far as the eye could see, and the signs that hung above them, which served only as a reminder for how far in the middle of nowhere Skylar was. Considering she was on her way away from Night City, though, that was hardly a problem for her.

Suddenly, she felt a furious buzzing in her pocket. She pulled her phone out to see an incoming call from Viktor. Skylar lowered her head. “Shit.” She didn’t have it in her heart to answer the call. She knew V was the one he wanted to talk to, and considering that when she left for Arasaka Tower, she was one seizure away from flatlining, he was probably checking if she was alright. She wasn’t, though, and Skylar couldn’t bear the thought of having to tell any of V’s friends that. Not only that, but she had no clue how she would even begin to explain it.

Eventually, the ringing stopped, and for a brief moment, Skylar felt relieved, but that feeling quickly went out the window as Vik’s face appeared on the screen. “Hey, V. I know you’re a free bird and all, you’re gonna do what you want, when you want. But you could at least let me know you’re alive, you know? I- I don’t wanna say anything, but you missed your last checkup, and like I told you a million times… ugh. Just call when you can, ok? See ya.”

Vik’s face disappeared and revealed a screen that told Skylar that she had six video messages waiting for her. “Dammit, V. Why’d you have to have so many fuckin’ friends?” she muttered. She let out a heavy sigh, leaning her head against the side of the bus before returning her attention to the phone in her hand. She knew it was gonna hurt, but Skylar at least owed it to V to, at the very least, watch the messages.

After Vik’s, she opened up the next message, and an older woman’s face flashed onto the screen. Skylar recognized her as Jackie’s mother from her time looking at V’s memories. “V! Dèjate de pendejadas! Straight to voicemail again? What’s going on with you, eh? Lose your tongue, or what? I wanted to tell you I- I’m cooking a supper on Sunday for Jackie’s birthday. All his favorite food… Chilaquiles, tamales, if I can find some real corn, oy, maybe even elote. It’d be nice if you could come over. Think about it.”

Skylar found herself wiping away a few tears while silently cursing V’s hormones. “You really aren’t making this easy for me, are you?” She knew exactly how important Jackie was to V, and if she were still here, she probably would’ve been on her way back to Night City already. Skylar just couldn’t do it, though. She scrolled down and opened the next message.

This time, the person leaving the message was Panam. At least she looked happy. “Hello, V. How are things? The Aldecaldos packed everything up, and we’re leaving Night City. Right now, we set up camp on the other side of the border. The weather in the Badlands is pleasant as usual… my cooler melted, it’s ninety degrees in the shade, and there’s sandstorms headed straight for us, so yeah, you’re missing out. No, but seriously, we’re doing alright. Saul and I somehow get along, for better or for worse, but still… family’s always growing, and work’s always piling up, but better to keep busy, right? And to think if it wasn’t for you, I’d still be stumblin’ my way through Night City, so I just wanna say thank you- for all you’ve done for me. I’d still be lost if you hadn’t set me on the right track. All right, well, talk soon, V. Don’t be a stranger.”

‘ _At least that one wasn’t so bad_ ,’ Skylar thought. ‘ _If anything, I know where she’s comin’ from since I owe everything to V_.’ She did her best to hold back some more tears and opened up the next message. The screen was black, but as soon as she heard the voice, Skylar knew precisely who it was; Takemura. She still didn’t understand why V went back to help him, considering she hated corps almost as much as Johnny did. Suddenly, though, Skylar realized why the screen was black, and she smirked a bit. “The damn gonk has his finger over the lens.”

“V? I don’t know if you can hear me, but I’m calling to tell you that I am going… underground, as you would say. With Hanako-sama dead and Yorinobu still running Arasaka, I have run out of ideas. Perhaps I shall try to find Oda, but I do not think we can do much even then. I wanted to call you and thank you for saving my life. I do not know where you are now, but when you hear this, just be aware that I will let you know if I need your assistance. Farewell, V.”

‘ _Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy after all_ ,’ Skylar thought. ‘ _V must’ve seen something in him that made it worth going through an entire squad of Arasaka goons to save him_.’ Of course, she never would’ve admitted that to V. Nevertheless, Skylar looked at the last two messages, the first one coming from Misty.

“Hey, V? Sorry to bother you, I know you’re a busy woman and everything, but… well, I was wondering how you were doing, so I laid out a quick tarot and- oh dear… The Hanged Man. The Magician. The Star. Those- those are not good cards, V. They’re really bad. Something like death, but not quite. Take care of yourself, ok? I’ll… I hope to hear from you soon.”

Skylar slid down to the ground, still leaning against the bus. She was never one to believe in things like tarot cards, but she had to admit that was pretty damn accurate. “And to think, it’s all my fault,” she muttered. “Because I didn’t do more.” Looking down at her phone, she saw only one message remaining. She already knew who it was from, and she almost didn’t open it, but eventually, she mustered up the courage to press the button, and Judy’s face appeared.

“Fuck! V… I- I don’t know where we went wrong. Maybe something happened, or you needed to lay low, but if you can, please just give me s- some kinda signal that you’re alive and everything’s ok, please. And if you _ever_ need help, you know I’m here for you, right? Always. Stay safe… and call me when you hear this.”

Skylar lowered her head onto her knees. "God damn it. Why am I such a fuck up? All these people who cared about V, and I don’t even have the guts to tell them she’s gone.” It was Judy that Skylar felt most guilty about, though. She and V cared so much for each other, and then Skylar had to ruin it by dropping off the face of the earth. “Fuck. I- I’m sorry, V. You took a bullet for me, and I’m already fucking everything up. I know you can’t hear me, but… I just wish I could tell you face to face.” She kicked up some sand and stood up, making her way into the gas station.

After spending as little time inside as possible, Skylar climbed back into the bus and sat down in the same spot she was in before. She set her bag down next to her and pulled out the bottle of beer from inside. As the bus started to pull away, she twisted the cap off and took a drink while looking out the window at the landscape passing by. Skylar tried to distract herself by of something else- anything else, but it didn’t work. Every time she felt like she had forgotten, her mind drifted back to all those people still expecting V to call them back any time now. Instead, they’d just sit there, waiting forever because Skylar was too afraid.

‘ _Maybe there’s some way I can tell ‘em without having to face them_ ,’ she thought. ‘ _Like, send them a message or some shit_.’ Of course, she also had no idea how she would go about doing that. The more she thought about it, though, the more she realized it might not be a good idea. She could only imagine how mad they would be when they found out their best friend was dead, and the person responsible was not only in her body but couldn’t even look them in the eyes when she told them.

Suddenly, Skylar jumped at the sound of an obnoxiously loud pair of motorcycles sliding past the bus on either side. She could hear a lot more than just the two engines, though, at least three times as many. The bus came to a screeching halt before she could realize what was happening, and she felt her body lurch forward into the seat in front of her. Picking herself back up, Skylar looked out the window and saw several cars and motorcycles blocking the bus’s path. She quickly reached into her bag and pulled out her pistol, already sensing that this would end badly.

“Why don’t you come on out here?” One of the men outside called out to Skylar.

She rolled her eyes underneath her aviators and cautiously stepped out of the bus, keeping her pistol hidden. She also made sure the mantis blades in her forearms were ready to spring out at any moment. “You jackoffs got a reason for sitting in the middle of the road? Or this a pathetic attempt at a catcall?”

The man from before chuckled, nudging one of the men next to him. “She’s about as fiery as her hair is.” He turned his attention back to Skylar. “Don’t you know you’re supposed to pay us Raffens a visit when you’re passing through? Although, quite frankly, I’m more interested in what someone like you is doing way out here.”

“So this _was_ a pathetic attempt at a catcall. Good to know,” Skylar shot back. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got places to be, so if you could kindly get out of the fucking road, that’d be just perfect.”

The man walked up to her with a pistol in his hand. “I don’t think you realize the position you’re in. You ain’t exactly in a position to be makin’ threats. Besides…” He pressed the gun up to Skylar’s chin. “I’d just hate to have to blow that pretty face of yours right off.”

‘ _Alright, I’ve had enough of this_.’ As fast as she could manage, Skylar pulled out her pistol and smacked him in the jaw as hard as he could, sending him staggering backward. The others fixed their sights at her, but nobody pulled the trigger. “Still feelin’ like hot shit now?” she taunted him.

The man looked like he was about to reply, but instead, he, along with everyone else, seemed to be focusing on a distant sound that was getting louder. Skylar heard it too, but she kept her sights trained on the Raffen. As the sound got closer, she could hear it more distinctly; more engines- and a lot of them at that. “Shit, you don’t think it’s them, do you?” one of the other men asked.

“Expecting friends?” Skylar asked as she saw them all start to grow more and more concerned.

Suddenly, a loud boom was followed by an explosion that turned one of their cars into a fireball and sent everyone flying. The area erupted with gunfire, and Skylar tried to get to her feet as the ringing in her ears started to fade as quickly as it came. She looked around and saw at least ten cars emerge from behind a small hill, and among them was a huge tank, a Basilisk.

‘ _You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me_ ,’ she thought. ‘ _Out of all the fucking nomad clans, I run into the god damn Aldecaldos_.’ She reached for her pistol and landed a clean headshot on the closest Raffen. ‘ _Fuck it. Don’t really got many options, do I?_ ’

Skylar ran around the corner of the bus for cover. Peeking around the corner, she set her sights on another Raffen and took him out in one shot. She heard another burst of shots from the Basilisk, and then the shooting stopped. Skylar briefly looked around the corner again to see if any Aldecaldos were in her direct line of sight. Seeing that the coast was clear, she tried to start casually walking away in the hopes they wouldn’t see her, but she froze when she heard a familiar voice say, “V? Is that you?”


	3. Aldecaldos

‘ _God damn it_ ,’ Skylar thought. Any hopes of slipping away without the Aldecaldos noticing her had just gone out the window. She turned around and saw Panam walking over to her with a massive grin on her face.

“Oh man, I knew it was you- nice shades, by the way.” Panam pointed to Skylar’s aviators. “Who’da thought we’d run into each other miles away from Night City? Hey Saul, Mitch! Look who I found,” she called out.

Skylar felt her heart sink as Saul and Mitch came up to join Panam. “Hey, V- long time no see,” Saul said, leaning against one of the Aldecaldos’ cars. “We were starting to get worried about you when you weren’t answering our calls.”

“So you decided to skip town too, eh?” Mitch chimed in. “Can’t say I blame you, considering everything that happened. How’d you make it across the border? In this bus here?”

‘ _You’re gonna have to tell them_ ,’ Skylar told herself. ‘ _Quit being a bitch and rip off the fucking bandage already_.’ She took a deep breath and put her aviators in her jacket pocket. “Listen, guys… I- I have something I need to tell you, but I’m not quite sure how to say it,” she admitted, doing her best to avert her eyes.

All three nomads’ expressions became more serious, and Saul was the first to break the awkward silence. “Well, if you feel you need to tell us something, then we can take it- we are family after all.”

“That’s just the thing, though,” Skylar told them, rubbing the back of her neck. “I’m not family because, well, I’m not… V.” She did her best to look at them to gauge their reaction, which was confusion above all else.

“Whaddya mean you’re not V?” Mitch asked. “You hit your head or somethin’?” He tried to lighten the mood a bit, but it didn’t seem to work very well.

Skylar paused for a moment, trying to think of the best way to explain the situation when she remembered that V had told Panam about her engram. “Panam, do you remember what V told you after she blacked out in your old camp? About Johnny Silverhand?”

Saul and Mitch both seemed confused, but Panam nodded hesitantly. “About how his personality was on some chip in _your_ head, yeah. I don’t get what that has to do with anything, though.”

“Well, V didn’t tell you everything. The reason she needed to get the chip out and was having all those reactions was that the psyche on the chip, _my_ psyche, was overwriting her brain.”

Panam’s eyes displayed a sudden realization of what Skylar was talking about, followed by a mix of confusion and concern. “So- are you… Johnny Silverhand?” she asked in disbelief.

Skylar shrugged. “More or less. Goin’ by Skylar now, since it’s kinda hard to call myself Johnny in this body.” She gestured to her whole body.

“But then, what about V?” Mitch asked. “If you’re here, does that mean V is… gone?”

Skylar lowered her head. “She’s not dead, but as far as I know, we won’t see her again,” she told them solemnly. “Long story short, I stormed Arasaka Tower to turn her into a construct and de-tangle us, but…” She sighed, dreading the memories that were already flooding back into her mind. “The chip had already done too much. If V went back into her body, she would’ve been dead in six months, so she sacrificed herself. I tried to stop her, but she was hellbent on starting anew. I- I just wish I could’ve done more.” She did her best to resist the urge to cry, considering she had already done enough of that in the past few days.

“Fuck.” Panam muttered. “Why didn’t she ask us for help? She was family, and she knew that! She knew we’d have done anything for her.” She sat down, resting her head on her knees.

Skylar thought back to those final hours with V on the roof of Misty’s and how V was insistent not to bring the Aldecaldos into anything. “She didn’t want to put the lives of every person here on the line just for her,” she finally said. “So she took some pills that put me in control of her body, and I went to Arasaka Tower with Rogue, but… it cost Rogue her life- not to mention the whole thing was for nothing.”

Panam looked up, seemingly caught off-guard “Rogue’s dead too?” she echoed. “Shit. I mean- I couldn’t stand her, but I never would’ve wanted her to die.” Her voice trailed off, and silence crept in.

Once again, Saul was the one to break it. “So then, that begs the question; what are you doing now? More specifically, what are you doing all the way out here?”

“I wanted to get away from Night City and start fresh, like V,” Skylar explained. “Hopped on the first outbound bus and didn’t look back.”

“Heh, kinda similar to us, actually,” Mitch realized, chuckling a bit. “After everything that happened with the Raffens and all the corps, we just decided that we couldn’t stay in Night City anymore, so we saddled up and headed out through a tunnel running under the border.” He looked around at the aftermath of the skirmish that had just taken place moments before. “Although, I suppose the Raffens had the same idea.”

“Listen, V- Skylar,” Panam quickly corrected herself. “Why don’t you come with us? We’re gonna be pitching camp for the night in a few hours.”

Skylar’s gaze shifted between her feet, the Badlands, and the three Aldecaldos. “No,” she finally said. “V was the one that was part of your family, not me. ‘Sides, it would just be nothing but a constant reminder that I fucked up and couldn’t save V. Not to mention the whole nomad lifestyle just doesn’t agree with me.”

“You’d be surprised how many people have said that before joining,” Saul pointed out. “Also, the way I see it, you don’t have much of a choice. We’re out in the middle of nowhere, and I doubt that bus will be going anywhere anytime soon.”

Panam sat up. “We’re heading for Arizona. You could at least come with us until we hit the next town,” she offered. “Besides, I’ve got something to show you; follow me.” She started making her way over to the Aldecaldos, and Skylar hesitantly followed.

After making their way through all the people and vehicles, Panam stopped in front of a black and red motorcycle, which Skylar instantly recognized. “The last time V left our camp, she left this here- said it belonged to her friend Jackie,” Panam explained before pulling out a key from her pocket. “Think you should have it.”

Skylar looked at the key and felt a sudden wave of memories rush into her mind, V’s memories specifically. She saw the time Jackie met her at Lizzie’s and helped her get back onto her feet after Arasaka took everything from her. Then, she saw the two of them riding to Konpeki Plaza, the heist, and eventually, Jackie’s death. Skylar could skill feel the pain that V felt in those final moments. ‘ _V, I hope I make you proud doing this_ ,’ she thought, taking the key from Panam’s hand. “So, what comes next?”

“Well, the clan’s gonna be eager to talk to V. I guess we’ll need to break the news to them somehow. The only problem is I don’t know how we’d go about explaining it to them,” Panam said, pacing around as she thought.

Skylar brushed a few loose strands of hair out of her face. “Gonna have to tell ‘em the truth.” She sat down on the motorcycle. “Can’t really adequately explain it to them otherwise.” She let out a heavy sigh. “Even if I’d rather leave the life of Johnny Silverhand behind,” she added hesitantly. “I keep telling myself that I gotta move on and stop obsessing over what happened, but every time I think I’m ready to finally come to terms with it all, I get dragged right back into it.”

Panam leaned against the side of her car. “That why you didn’t look very thrilled to see us at first?” she asked.

“I hadn’t seen any of the people V was close to since I came outta Arasaka Tower. Been dodging their calls cause I was too afraid to look ‘em in the eye and tell them I fucked up,” Skylar explained. “Eventually, I just had enough of it. The whole damn city was nothing but a reminder of my fuck-ups, all of them.” V, Alt, Rogue- so many people she could’ve done more to save. “You guys are the first ones I ran into.”

“Do you mind if I ask you a question?” Panam straightened up a bit, but she retained the look of curiosity in her eyes. 

Skylar shrugged. “Sure, why the hell not?” She felt she would regret it, but at the same time, she was curious as to what it was Panam wanted to know.

“What exactly is the story between you and V? Like, what did she mean to you?” Panam shook her head. “That doesn’t really sound like what I’m trying to say, but… I just can’t find the right words to explain, y’know?”

Skylar hesitated for a moment as she tried to think about answering Panam’s question before finally speaking. “We had a, well, let’s just call it a rocky relationship, at first. I woke up after fifty years in some girl’s head, and she woke up in a landfill only to realize that I was killing her bit by bit, albeit unwillingly. Naturally, we didn’t get along at first. We did share one thing in common, though: we both wanted me out of her head, even if it was for different reasons.” She thought back to the first time she spoke to V, smiling a bit upon realizing how far the two had gotten together. “Over time, though, we started to warm up to each other. It took me a while, but eventually, I realized that she was the closest friend I had ever had. Everyone else hated my guts or pretended to like me, only to hate my guts behind my back. Even then, I managed to cock that up too. She’s still out there somewhere- beyond the Blackwall, and now all she can probably think about is how I failed her.”

Panam smiled warmly at Skylar and walked over to her. “You know, you’re not that bad, Skylar. I think if you give us a genuine chance, you’d actually come to like it with us. It might give that feeling like it’s where you belong. For now, though, let’s go. We should be getting on the road soon.”

After a somewhat awkward, albeit simplified, explanation of what happened with V to the Aldecaldos, Skylar decided that they handled it surprisingly well. What was even more surprising, though, was that, for the most part, they greeted her with open arms. Following a few more minutes of making sure everyone was ready, the Aldecaldos started to mount up again. Skylar made her way back over to her bike and got on, sticking the key in the ignition and starting it. She waited for a moment as everyone started to get moving, and she slipped into the group towards the rear. As she began to pick up speed, something clicked in Skylar’s mind. She could feel the wind tugging at her hair and the various sounds of different engines, and that’s when Skylar realized that for the first time, possibly in her whole life, she felt genuinely free- like she had no worries whatsoever. She had no corps telling her what to do, no Night City bullshit, just the open plains and the path before her.

“Hey, you’re Skylar, right?” She jumped a bit at the voice behind her. She looked to her right to see a young man, no older than twenty-five, with dirty blonde hair down to his neck. He drove up next to her on his motorcycle with an eager smile on his face.

“That’s my name,” Skylar responded, trying not to be too aggressive.

His eyes lit up with a sort of young innocence, which she had seen in V quite a few times. “I just wanna say, I uh… I love your music, or Johnny’s music, I guess. I listen to it all the time.”

Skylar smirked, finding his awkwardness amusing in a way. “Heh, glad to hear it.”

“Corey! Are you nagging her already?” another voice asked. Skylar looked over on her other side to see a woman who looked to be about twenty-eight with the same dirty blonde hair; only hers was longer and neatly tied back into a ponytail.

“I’m just talking with her, Jess,” Corey defended himself. “Also, you know that I’m an adult, right? I’m perfectly capable of managing on my own.”

Jess smirked. “Oh, come on, Corey. I’m just looking out for you and making sure you don’t embarrass yourself. It’s one of my jobs as your big sister.” She swerved around a large boulder in her path and slipped next to Skylar and Corey again.

“It’s fine, don’t worry,” Skylar assured her. “In fact, I enjoy the company.” Meeting some new faces was a nice change of pace, plus it helped get her mind off of V. “Are you guys new?”

Corey nodded. “Yeah, we joined the Aldecaldos about a week ago, just before we all left Night City,” he explained. “Before that, though, it was always just Jess and me in the Badlands.”

“Yeah, it was kind of a drastic change,” Jess admitted. “But it didn’t take long for me to end up liking life as an Aldecaldo more than alone with Corey.”

‘ _I just hope it ends up being the same for me_ ,’ Skylar thought. ‘ _Because I don’t have a fuckin’ clue as to what I’ll do next_.’ She tried taking her mind off her worries and looked back toward the open landscape in front of her.

“Hey, Skylar. Why don’t you grab a drink with us after we set up camp for the night?” Corey offered.

Skylar smiled. “Sure. Sounds like fun.”

“Until then, how about we race to the front of the caravan?” Jess suggested. “Starting now!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, just a heads up, the next chapter might take a bit longer than the previous two cause I'm gonna take some time to work on my Ace Combat stuff. Hope you enjoy this chapter though!


	4. Around the Campfire

After riding for a little while longer, the Aldecaldos eventually found a valley to stop and set up camp in. As the sun started to slip behind the horizon, Skylar found herself stuck pitching her tent. She could feel a cool breeze setting in, but she paid no attention to it. Instead, she focused on the lopsided tent that she had set up. Sitting on the edge of her cot, Skylar took off her aviators, setting them down on the stand next to her bed, along with her pistol. For a brief moment, she glanced over at the mirror, only to tear herself away. She couldn’t bear seeing V’s face every time she looked in a mirror, so Skylar simply tried to avoid them as best she could. She pulled out her phone and found herself drawn to the messages that sat unanswered, even though she knew it would leave her disappointed in herself. To her surprise, though, she discovered a new message waiting for her from Kerry.

“Goddammit,” Skylar muttered with a heavy sigh. Out of all the friends that V had, Kerry was the only one Skylar felt that she could willingly tell the truth of what happened at Mikoshi. Even then, though, she would never do it. She didn’t want to risk Kerry telling anyone else, as he would likely do.

“This what you call a tent?” Jess’ voice caught Skylar off-guard, and she looked over to see her standing in the opening.

Skylar smiled a bit. “It gets the job done. That’s all that matters,” she answered.

“Well, I guess I’ll have to help you pitch it properly later,” Jess said with a shrug. “For now, though, everyone’s gathering around the campfire. You should come.”

“I dunno if I should,” Skylar admitted, looking away from Jess. “After everything that’s happened, it’d probably just be awkward.”

“Not like you’re gonna be able to get out of that,” Jess told her. “Besides, if you’re living with us, you’ll have to talk with people eventually.”

Skylar took a deep breath in and out and stood up. “Fuck. I don’t get it. I keep telling myself that I need to move on, but no matter how hard I try, it doesn’t work.”

“I think I get what you mean,” Jess said. “After Corey and I’s parents died, we had to run away into the badlands, but even though we saw them die, we both kept hoping that they were still out there. Like… it didn’t seem real.”

Skylar nodded. “Yeah. Like that, more or less. V did so much for me that it just feels wrong that she’s not here anymore. How did you get over that feeling?” she asked, looking up at Jess.

“Simple: I met the Aldecaldos,” Jess answered, smiling. “They gave Corey and me a purpose when we felt like we had none. I think if you put in some effort, the same might happen for you.”

“Maybe you’re right,” Skylar admitted. “Still, I can’t say I have much hope of that happening.”

“Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to grace us with her presence.” Mitch smirked as he saw Skylar and Jess join the nomads at the campfire.

“You should see her tent,” Jess teased Skylar as she sat down next to Corey on a log. “It’s the most lopsided thing I’ve ever seen.”

Skylar hesitantly joined Jess on the log. “Don’t know what you were expecting from me, to tell you the truth.”

Mitch waved his hand dismissively. “Ah, don’t worry about it. Everyone gets shit for something from their first few days as an Aldecaldo.”

“I seem to remember you getting shit for jumping about ten feet in the air whenever you saw a snake,” Cassidy chimed in, not looking up from the tune he was strumming on his guitar.

“Hey, Skylar. Want a beer?” Corey offered, reaching over to her with a bottle.

Skylar shrugged. “Wouldn’t mind one.” She took the bottle from his hand and twisted the cap off before taking a drink. As she sat there, listening to the crickets, fire, and the guitar, all while looking up at the star-filled sky, Skylar realized something. “God, being here in the middle of nowhere on a quiet night is a hell of a change from what I’m used to.”

“What was it like being Johnny Silverhand?” Corey asked, eyes illuminated with youthful innocence.

“Shitty,” Skylar answered bluntly. “At least, it was when you compare it to this. Don’t get me wrong; I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything but this.” She gestured to the open plains and the vast night sky. “This is just somethin’ else.”

“Saul, I thought we agreed on this.” Everyone shifted their attention to Panam and Saul, appearing from nearby. “Why do you have to make this difficult?”

“We did agree on this,” Saul told Panam. “But the Raffens being here changes things. If they show up, we’ll be caught entirely off-guard. We need to keep moving while we still can.”

“Saul, we have a _Basilisk_ ,” Panam reminded him. “If the Raffens even pop up from their holes, we’ll stomp on them. “Besides, we’ve been driving for three days straight. Everyone’s exhausted.”

“The sooner we get to Tuscon, the sooner we can stop and rest. When we’re there, we’ll be a hell of a lot safer than out here,” Saul countered.

Panam was about to respond, but she stopped herself as near silence fell over the camp. The only sounds still present were the crickets’ chirping, the fire’s popping, and the faint sound of engines, gradually getting closer. “Is that-“

“They’re here,” Saul answered Panam’s question before she could even finish it.

“Shit!” Panam growled. “Mitch, let’s go! To the Basilisk!”

“I’m right behind you, Panam!” Mitch responded, jumping to his feet and following Panam to the Basilisk.

Everyone else responded similarly, and the camp quickly descended into chaos. Skylar ran back to her tent as fast as she could and grabbed her Malorian. As soon as she finished loading it, gunfire erupted all over, further adding to the chaos. Skylar stepped out of her tent and looked around. Raffens came down from the top of the valley, opening fire at the camp of nomads. Skylar looked down the sights of her pistol, shooting an attacker in the head, causing their body to roll down the hill and trip several others on the way down.

“Well, I guess I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss this,” she muttered.

Trucks sped down the hill carrying even more Raffens and unloading them at the bottom of the valley. One by one, though, they all received the same treatment: a bullet in the head from Skylar. Once her gun clicked, informing her that she needed to reload, Skylar managed to do one of her flashy reloads before blasting a Raffen running at her with a machete.

“Damn. You really know how to take care of yourself,” Jess remarked, coming up behind Skylar with Corey hot on her heels. She fired a burst from her her assault rifle at a group of Raffens.

Skylar smirked. “Course I do,” she replied. “This is where I’m in my element. Well, here or with a guitar in my hands.”

“Looks like the three of us make quite the team,” Corey chimed in, reloading his shotgun. He was about to say more, but a Raffen came up behind him and grabbed him by the neck, using the nomad as a human shield.

“Corey!” Jess cried out as the Raffen started to drag him away, despite his resistance.

Skylar trained her sights on the two men, but she couldn’t get a clear shot on the Raffen without hitting Corey. Bit by bit, the Raffen dragged Corey back to one of the vans they came in before knocking him out and shoving him inside. Skylar could make out the shapes of others inside but couldn’t quite tell who. She didn’t have much of a chance, though, as they quickly sped off once they shut the doors

“You fucking bastards!” Jess screamed, chasing after the van for a few steps. “Get back here with my brother!”

“It’s gonna be alright, Jess,” Skylar said, trying to calm her down. “We’ll get him back.”

“Is everyone alright?” Saul called out.

Jess whipped around. “No, we’re not. Those damn Raffens nabbed Corey!”

“They grabbed Cassidy and Teddy too,” Carol reported.

Saul started pacing around anxiously. “Fuck. We don’t need this right now. Panam, go around and get a count of who all is missing.”

A brief moment of silence set in when Panam didn’t respond. Everyone looked around frantically until Bobby came in huffing. “They got ‘em!” he said between breaths. “They got Panam and Mitch.”


	5. The Storm

Everyone still in the Aldecaldos’ camp started murmuring amongst themselves after hearing the news. Skylar, on the other hand, stayed silent.

_‘Remember, these are V’s friends- not yours,’_ she reminded herself in her head. _‘You don’t owe them any-‘_ She stopped mid-thought, knowing that she was lying to herself. These people had given her a home, even after everything she did to their friend, and even if she couldn’t call them her friends, the fact that they were V’s gave Skylar all the more reason to help. _‘But would they do the same for me?’_ Jess and Corey might, but even then, they only just met. Aside from them, Panam was the only one Skylar knew, and she had been giving Skylar dirty glances ever since she found out about V. Skylar assumed that Panam still held her responsible, and she agreed with her. Skylar sighed, shoving her hands into her pockets. _‘It doesn’t matter if they’d do the same for me or not. I owe this to V.’_

Saul, who had been pacing around nervously as soon as he found out about Panam, finally stopped and looked over at Bobby. “What about the Basilisk?” he asked.

Bobby shook his head. “It broke down before we could get it up and running,” he reported. “It looks fixable, but I can’t do it on my own. I’d need Mitch here.”

“So what’re we gonna do, Saul?” Carol asked. “We’re going to get them, right?”

“I don’t see many options,” Saul admitted, moving a few strands of hair out of his face. “We don’t know enough to formulate a plan.” He started pacing around again. “Besides, from the looks of things, that storm is gonna be on us pretty soon.”

“So that’s it?” Jess demanded. “We’re just gonna throw our hands up in the air and give up? Leave them to those damn Raffens?”

“It’s not that simple,” Saul defended himself. “We don’t know where they went, how many of them there are, or what kind of gear they have at their disposal. We can’t expect to just throw ourselves at them and hope for the best. Not to mention we’d have to do this without the Basilisk, which would put us at a disadvantage.”

Skylar scoffed. “How convenient,” she muttered. “You stay out of harm’s way and get power all to yourself again.”

Saul’s eyes narrowed into slits as he whipped around to face her. “Are you insinuating what I think you are?” he demanded. “Because if so, then you’ve got some nerve. Need I remind you that you’re not even an Aldecaldo? You don’t know a damn thing about how we operate.”

Skylar shrugged. “Don’t need to,” she responded. “It doesn’t take being an Aldecaldo to see what’s going on here. I just thought that after Panam saved your ass from this exact situation, you’d have the fucking balls to save her.”

“You don’t know a damn thing about me,” Saul snapped. “So you don’t you sit here and accuse me of leaving part of my clan to die at the hands of the Raffens. Especially when you didn’t save someone everyone here considered an honorary part of the clan. Unlike you, I’ve got other people to look after besides myself.”

Skylar flinched. At first, she felt saddened more than anything, but that sadness quickly got replaced by anger. Her hand tightened and curled up into a fist, and before she could stop herself, she reached out and punched Saul in the mouth. A few people started murmuring as they watched the scene unfold, and a few of them got closer, but to her surprise, nobody did anything to stop her. Although, a few people looked as if they were about to. Skylar shook her hand to numb the stinging she felt in her knuckles before storming off to her tent. Once inside, she started looking around, moving just about everything around to find what she was looking for.

“Hey!” Jess called after Skylar, running to catch up with her. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going after them. You coming or not?” Skylar asked as she finally found what she was looking for: the replica jacket Rogue made for V. She put it on and grabbed her aviators.

Jess raised an eyebrow. “How are you gonna find them?” she asked. “We don’t know where they went.”

“We can follow their tracks,” Skylar answered, recalling how V did the same thing to find Hellman after his AV crashed. “But we have to move now before that storm catches us, so are you coming or not?”

“Of course I’m coming,” Jess responded. “You think I’m just gonna let my brother die at the hands of the damn Raffens?”

Skylar nodded. She wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about Jess tagging along. After all, she worked better alone, but part of her was glad she wasn’t going in alone. “Fine, let’s go then.” She put on her aviators and stepped out of her tent. With Jess right behind her, Skylar got on her bike and started it. After getting a thumbs-up from Jess, the two of them sped off into the badlands, following the tire tracks of the van they saw during the attack.

As the two of them rode through the open plains, Skylar looked up at the night sky above them. There was a stillness in the air that almost put her at ease if it weren’t for the shitty situation they were in. The peacefulness didn’t last long, however. When she turned her attention back to the tracks, she saw the storm getting closer in the distance.

“Guess Saul wasn’t lying,” she muttered under her breath. She sped up and moved alongside Jess, who was slightly farther ahead. “Looks like we’re gonna have to find somewhere to stop until this storm passes,” she yelled over the roar of their engines.

“We can keep going a little more,” Jess replied. “We’ve got to.” She had a look of determination in her eyes that reminded Skylar a bit too much of V.

“Look, Corey and the others are counting on us, but we can’t help them if we end up flatlining in a sandstorm,” Skylar reasoned. She scanned the horizon, looking for a place to stop until she saw a small abandoned-looking house not far off. “Come on.” She veered off of the path and over to the house. To her relief, Jess turned to follow her.

After they parked their bikes in the garage near the house, they hurried inside and closed the door behind them. Right away, cold air swept through the whole house, which wasn’t very big, to begin with, and sent a chill down Skylar’s spine. She looked around and quickly spotted a small stove with some firewood next to it.

“Got a light?” Skylar asked Jess as she knelt down and started setting a few logs down inside the stove.

Jess produced a lighter from her jacket pocket and tossed it to her. “Here,” she muttered.

Skylar caught it with little to no effort and put the flame up to her makeshift fireplace until the fire spread to the logs. “There we go. That outta keep us somewhat warm at least.” She stood up and looked around the room, but she found herself drawn to a guitar leaning against the wall in the corner. “Holy shit.” She walked over and picked it up. “Never thought I’d find a Deluze Orphean way out here.” She sat down in a chair sitting across from Jess and looked it over. “Looks in pretty good shape, too.” Her mind wandered to Steve and that guitar she gave him. Thinking about the innocent rockerboy-to-be made her smile a little.

Looking down at the guitar, she gave it a strum and was pleasantly surprised by how nice it sounded, considering how long it must’ve been sitting there. She took a moment to tune it and started playing a new tune. It was a melody that was a lot slower and more somber than the songs she usually played, but it came to her as she was leaving Night City, and she couldn’t stop thinking about it since. As she played the melody in a loop, Skylar thought about what she would call it before eventually deciding on Temperance.

“Skylar,” Jess said suddenly. “Do you think we’ll be too late?” she asked, looking down at her feet. “Because I keep thinking about Corey being scared to death only for those Raffens to kill him, and I just-“ She took a deep breath let her head sink into her hands. “I’m scared for him.”

Skylar took off her aviators and gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, Jess. He’s not alone. He’s with some of the most hardened veterans that the Aldecaldos have to offer. He’ll be alright- they all will,” she assured her. “Once this storm passes, we’ll get right back on the trail and bring them home.”

Jess looked up and took another deep breath. “I hope you’re right, Skylar.” For a moment, they both sat in near silence, save for the fire crackling and the wind howling outside. “You wanna get some sleep?” Jess finally asked.

Skylar shook her head. “Nah, you can go ahead and clock out if you want, but I’ll pass.” She tried to avoid sleeping whenever possible. All too often, she’d have nightmares about V and Alt beyond the Blackwall, running into some obstacle they couldn’t overcome and getting wiped from existence. It made Skylar’s blood run cold, and she hated it. Just once, she’d like to remember the good times she had with V, but every time, all she thought about was her failure to save her friend.

Jess shrugged and leaned back on the couch she was sitting on. “Suit yourself,” she said with a yawn. “Wake me up when it’s time to move.”

Skylar’s only response was a quick nod. As the fire began to die down, Skylar found herself surrounded by the howling winds and her thoughts- thoughts about what was about to happen within the next few hours, what she could’ve done differently to save V, and all of V’s friends that she left in the dust. As time passed, her worries left her mind one by one, and she sat alone, looking out the window at the storm that quickly surrounded them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok I'm so sorry it's been so long since I've posted a chapter. Without going on too long of a rant, I've been busy with schoolwork and my other fics, but more importantly I'm still trying to figure out how I want this story to play out in my head, so please bear with me if a chapter takes a long time because I want to get this fic just right for you guys and give this ending the longfic it deserves.


End file.
